Watch manufacturer Shinola expands to Europe

Shinola has opened its ecommerce website for visitors from Europe. Now people from Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom can order the Detroit-built watches, bicycles, journals, leather goods and shoe polish online. The expansion is a response to the growing international demand for the brand.

“Shinola is a global brand and our European website will now enable consumers in Europe direct access to all of our products,” said CEO Steve Bock. “This is an exciting next step as we further establish our presence in Europe.” The website is now available in six different languages (English, German, Dutch, French, Italian and Spanish) and offers products for sale to consumers in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Spain and UK.

Handcrafted goods
All products from Shinola are handcrafted goods and are built in Detroit. The company was founded in 2010 and started with manufacturing watches. A small group of businessmen then came together to discuss the possibility of regenerating the long-defunct American watch industry. Detroit was chosen not out of philanthropy, but for practical business reasons, as Bock told the Wall Street Journal last year. “It is a city of heritage and of global recognition—just look at what has come out of Detroit—the motor industry, World War II manufacturing, and music. Craftsmanship and a first-rate work ethic emanate from the city.”

Although watches make up the majority of Shinola’s output, the brand also encompasses leather goods, journals, bicycles and soda. It has physical stores in Detroit, Kansas City and the New York City neighborhood TriBeCa.

About the brand name Shinola
The original Shinola brand was founded in 1907 and made wax shoe polish. In 2001 the name was acquired by venture capital firm Bedrock Manufacturing. They chose this name after the catchphrase “You don’t know shit from Shinola” surfaced in a conversation. Also, Dolly Parton wrote a song called “Shinola”, as you can hear below: